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Lit 


*>v 


UNIVERSI'iY  CF  I  ,N  DIEGO  V 

LA  JuLLA.  CALIFORNIA  ^Vl2C 


THE    HEADSWOMAN 


\he  Sam*  Author 

THE 

GOLDEN    AGE 

P  •    •     N     P  .I'KRS 

The  Headswoman 

BY 

KENNETH    GRAHAME 


I 


JOHN   LANE:    THE    BODLEY    HEAD 
NEW  YORK  AND   LONDON 

1898 


Copyright,  J 
By  John  La  \  k. 

All  rights  ra,  • 


The  Headswoman 

9 

i 

IT  was  a  bland,  sunny  morning  of  a  me- 
diaeval May,  — an  old-style  May  of  the 
most  typical  quality;  and  the  Council  of 
the  little  town  of  St.  Radegonde  were 
assembled,  as  was  their  wont  at  that  hour, 
in  the  picturesque  upper  chamber  of  the 
Hotel  de  Ville,  for  the  dispatch  of  the  usual 
municipal  business.  Though  the  date  was 
early  sixteenth  century,  the  members  of 
this  particular  town-council  possessed  con- 
siderable resemblance  to  those  of  similar 
assemblies  in  the  seventeenth,  eighteenth, 
and  even  the  nineteenth  centuries,  in  a  gen- 
eral absence  of  any  characteristic  at  all  — 
unless  a  pervading  hopeless  insignificance 

5 


The  Headswoman 

can  be  considered  as  such.  All  the  char 
acter  in  the  room,  indeed,  seemed  to  be 
concentrated  in  the  girl  who  stood  before 
the  table,  erect,  yet  at  her  ease,  facing  the 
members  in  general  and  Mr.  Mayor  in  par- 
ticular; a  delicate-handed,  handsome  girl  of 
some  eighteen  summers,  whose  tall,  supple 
figure  was  well  set  off  by  the  quiet,  though 
tasteful  mourning  in  which  she  was  clad. 

"  Well,  gentlemen,"  the  Mayor  was  say- 
ing, "this  little  business  appears  to  be  — 
cr  —  quite  in  order,  and  it  only  remains  for 
me  to  —  cr  —  review  the  facts.  You  are 
aware  that  the  town  has  lately  had  the  mis- 
fortune to  lose  its  executioner,  —  a  gentle- 
man who,  I  may  say,  performed  the  duties 
of  his  office  with  neatness  and  dispatch,  and 
gave  the  fullest  satisfaction  to  all  with  whom 
he  —  er  —  came  in  contact.  But  the  Coun- 
cil has  already,  in  a  vote  of  condolence, 
expressed  its  sense  of  the  —  er  —  striking 
qualities  of  the  deceased.     You  are  doubt- 

6 


The  Headswoman 

less  also  aware  that  the  office  is  hereditary, 
being  secured  to  a  particular  family  in  this 
town,  so  long  as  any  one  of  its  members  is 
ready  and  willing  to  take  it  up.  The  deed 
lies  before  me,  and  appears  to  be  —  er  — 
quite  in  order.  It  is  true  that  on  this 
occasion  the  Council  might  have  been  called 
upon  to  consider  and  examine  the  title  of 
the  claimant,  the  late  lamented  official  hav- 
ing only  left  a  daughter,  —  she  who  now 
stands  before  you ;  but  I  am  happy  to  say 
that  Jeanne  —  the  young  lady  in  question 
—  with  what  I  am  bound  to  call  great  good- 
feeling  on  her  part,  has  saved  us  all  trouble 
in  that  respect,  by  formally  applying  for  the 
family  post,  with  all  its  —  er  —  duties,  priv- 
ileges, and  emoluments;  and  her  applica- 
tion appears  to  be  —  er  —  quite  in  order. 
There  is  therefore,  under  the  circumstances, 
nothing  left  for  us  to  do  but  to  declare  the 
said  applicant  duly  elected.  I  would  wish, 
however,  before  I  —  er  —  sit  down,  to  make 

7 


The  Headswoman 

it  quite  clear  to  the —  cr  —  fair  petitioner, 
that  if  a  laudable  desire  to  save  the  Coun- 
cil trouble  in  the  matter  has  led  her  to  a  — 
cr  —  hasty  conclusion,  it  is  quite  open  to 
her  to  reconsider  her  position.  Should  she 
determine  not  to  press  her  claim,  the  suc- 
cession to  the  post  would  then  apparently 
devolve  upon  her  cousin  Enguerrand,  well 
known  to  yon  all  as  a  practising  advocate 
in  the  courts  of  this  town.  Though  the 
youth  has  not,  I  admit,  up  to  now  proved 
a  conspicuous  success  in  the  profession  he 
has  chosen,  still  there  is  no  reason  why  a 
bad  lawyer  should  not  make  an  excellent 
executioner;  and  in  view  of  the  close 
friendship  —  may  I  even  say  attachment? 
—  existing  between  the  cousins,  it  is  possi- 
ble that  this  young  lady  may,  in  due  course, 
practically  enjoy  the  solid  emoluments  of 
the  position  without  the  necessity  of  dis- 
charging its  (to  some  girls)  uncongenial 
duties.     And  so,  though  not  the  rose  her- 

8 


The   Headswoman 

self,  she   would    still   be  —  er  —  near   the 
rose !  "     And  the  Mayor  resumed  his  seat, 
chuckling  over  his  little  pleasantry,  which 
the  keener  wits  of  the  Council  proceeded 
to  explain  at  length  to  the  more  obtuse. 
"  Permit  me,  Mr.  Mayor,"  said  the  girl, 
quietly,  "  first  to  thank  you  for  what  was 
evidently  the  outcome  of  a  kindly  though 
misdirected  feeling  on  your  part;   and  then 
to  set  you  right  as  to  the  grounds  of  my 
application    for    the    post   to   which    you 
admit   my   hereditary   claim.     As   to    my 
cousin,  your  conjecture  as  to  the  feeling 
between  us  is  greatly  exaggerated ;   and  I 
may  further  say  at  once,  from  my  knowl- 
edge of  his  character,  that  he  is  little  qual- 
ified   either    to    adorn    or    to    dignify   an 
important  position  such  as  this.     A  man 
who  has  achieved  such  indifferent  success 
in  a  minor  and  less  exacting  walk  of  life,  is 
hardly  likely  to  shine  in  an  occupation  de- 
manding punctuality,  concentration,  judg- 

9 


The  Headswoman 

ment,  —  all  the  qualities,  in  fine,  that  go  to 
make  a  good  business  man.  But  this  is 
beside  the  question.  My  motive,  gentle- 
men, in  demanding  what  is  my  due,  is  a 
simple  and  (I  trust)  an  honest  one,  and  I 
desire  that  there  should  be  no  misunder- 
standing. It  is  my  wish  to  be  dependent 
on  no  one.  I  am  both  willing  and  able 
to  work,  and  I  only  ask  for  what  is  the 
common  right  of  humanity,  —  admission 
to  the  labour  market.  How  many  poor 
toiling  women  would  simply  jump  at  a 
chance  like  this  which  fortune,  by  the  acci- 
dent of  birth,  lays  open  to  me  !  And  shall 
I,  from  any  false  deference  to  that  conven- 
tional voice  which  proclaims  this  thing  as 
'  nice,'  and  that  thing  as  '  not  nice,'  re- 
ject a  handicraft  which  promises  me  both 
artistic  satisfaction  and  a  competence? 
No,  gentlemen ;  my  claim  is  a  small  one, 
—  only  a  fair  day's  wage  for  a  fair  day's 
work.     But  I  can  accept  nothing  less,  nor 

10 


The  Headswoman 

consent  to  forgo  my  rights,  even  for  any- 
contingent  remainder  of  possible  cousinly 
favour !  " 

There  was  a  touch  of  scorn  in  her  fine 
contralto  voice  as  she  finished  speaking; 
the  Mayor  himself  beamed  approval.  He 
was  not  wealthy,  and  had  a  large  family  of 
daughters  ;  so  Jeanne's  sentiments  seemed 
to  him  entirely  right  and  laudable. 

"  Well,  gentlemen,"  he  began  briskly, 
"  then  all  we  've  got  to  do,  is  to " 

"  Beg  pardon,  your  worship,"  put  in 
Master  Robinet,  the  tanner,  who  had  been 
sitting  with  a  petrified,  Bill-the-Lizard  sort 
of  expression  during  the  speechifying: 
"  but  are  we  to  understand  as  how  this 
here  young  lady  is  going  to  be  the  public 
executioner  of  this  here  town?" 

"  Really,  neighbour  Robinet,"  said  the 
Mayor,  somewhat  pettishly,  "  you  Ve  got 
ears  like  the  rest  of  us,  I  suppose;  and 
you  know  the  contents  of  the  deed ;   and 

ii 


The  Headswoman 

you  Ye  had  my  assurance  that  it 's  —  er 
—  quite  in  order;  and  as  it's  getting  to- 
wards lunch-time " 

"  But  it's  unheard  of,"  protested  honest 
Robinct.  "  There  has  n't  ever  been  no 
such  thing — leastways  not  as  I've  heard 
tell." 

"  Well,  well,  well,"  said  the  Mayor. 
"  everything  must  have  a  beginning,  I 
suppose.  Times  arc  different  now,  you 
know.  There 's  the  march  of  intellect, 
and  —  er  —  all  that  sort  of  thing.  We 
must  advance  with  the  times  —  don't  you 
sec,  Robinet? — advance  with  the  times!  " 

"  Well,  I  'm "  began  the  tanner. 

But  no  one  heard,  on  this  occasion,  the 
tanner's  opinion  as  to  his  condition,  physi- 
cal or  spiritual ;  for  the  clear  contralto  cut 
short  his  obtestations. 

"If  there's  really  nothing  more  to  be 
said,  Mr.  Mayor,"  she  remarked,  "  I  need 
not  trespass  longer  on  your  valuable  time. 

12 


The  Headswoman 

I  propose  to  take  up  the  duties  of  my 
office  to-morrow  morning,  at  the  usual 
hour.  The  salary  will,  I  assume,  be  reck- 
oned from  the  same  date ;  and  I  shall 
make  the  customary  quarterly  application 
for  such  additional  emoluments  as  may 
have  accrued  to  me  during  that  period. 
You  see  I  am  familiar  with  the  routine. 
Good-morning,  gentlemen  !  "  And  as  she 
passed  from  the  Council  chamber,  her 
small  head  held  erect,  even  the  tanner  felt 
that  she  took  with  her  a  large  portion 
of  the  May  sunshine  which  was  con- 
descending that  morning  to  gild  their 
deliberations. 


13 


The  Headswoman 


II 

/^\NE  evening,  a  few  weeks  later,  Jeanne 

^^  was  taking  a  stroll  on  the  ramparts 
of  the  town,  a  favourite  and  customary  walk 
of  hers  when  business  cares  were  over. 
The  pleasant  expanse  of  country  that  lay 
spread  beneath  her  —  the  rich  sunset,  the 
gleaming,  sinuous  river,  and  the  noble  old 
chateau  that  dominated  both  town  and 
pasture  from  its  adjacent  height  —  all 
served  to  stir  and  bring  out  in  her  those 
poetic  impulses  which  had  lain  dormant 
during  the  working  day;  while  the  cool 
evening  breeze  smoothed  out  and  oblit- 
erated any  little  jars  or  worries  which 
might  have  ensued  during  the  practice  of 
a  profession  in  which  she  was  still  some- 
thing of  a  novice.  This  evening  she  felt 
fairly  happy  and  content.     True,  business 

'4 


The   Headswoman 

was  rather  brisk,  and  her  days  had  been 
fully  occupied ;  but  this  mattered  little  so 
long  as  her  modest  efforts  were  appreciated, 
and  she  was  now  really  beginning  to  feel 
that,  with  practice,  her  work  was  creditably 
and  artistically  done.  In  a  satisfied,  some- 
what dreamy  mood,  she  was  drinking 
in  the  various  sweet  influences  of  the 
evening,  when  she  perceived  her  cousin 
approaching. 

"  Good-evening,  Enguerrand,"  cried 
Jeanne,  pleasantly;  she  was  thinking  that 
since  she  had  begun  to  work  for  her  living, 
she  had  hardly  seen  him  —  and  they  used 
to  be  such  good  friends.  Could  anything 
have  occurred  to  offend  him? 

Enguerrand  drew  near  somewhat  mood- 
ily, but  could  not  help  allowing  his  expres- 
sion to  relax  at  sight  of  her  fair  young  face, 
set  in  its  framework  of  rich  brown  hair, 
wherein  the  sunset  seemed  to  have  tangled 
itself  and  to  cling,  reluctant  to  leave  it. 


The  Headswoman 

"  Sit  down,  Engucrrand,"  continued 
Jeanne,  "and  tell  me  what  you've  been 
doing  this  long  time.  Been  very  busy,  and 
winning  forensic  fame  and  gold?" 

"  Well,  not  exactly,"  said  Engucrrand, 
moody  once  more.  "  The  fact  is,  there  's 
so  much  interest  required  nowadays  at  the 
courts  that  unassisted  talent  never  gets  a 
chance.     And  you,  Jeanne?  " 

"  Oh,  I  don't  complain,"  answered 
Jeanne,  lightly.  "Of  course,  it's  fair-time 
just  now,  you  know,  and  we  're  always 
busy  then.  But  work  will  be  lighter  soon, 
and  then  I  '11  get  a  day  off,  and  we  '11  have 
a  delightful  ramble  and  picnic  in  the  woods, 
as  we  used  to  do  when  we  were  children. 
What  fun  we  had  in  those  old  days,  En- 
gucrrand !  Do  you  remember  when  we 
were  quite  little  tots,  and  used  to  play  at 
executions  in  the  back-garden,  and  you 
were  a  bandit  and  a  buccaneer,  and  all 
sorts  of  dreadful  things,  and  I  used  to  chop 

16 


The  Headswoman 

off  your  head  with  a  paper-knife?  How 
pleased  dear  father  used  to  be !  " 

"Jeanne,"  said  Enguerrand,  with  some 
hesitation,  "  you  've  touched  upon  the  very 
subject  that  I  came  to  speak  to  you  about. 
Do  you  know,  dear,  I  can't  help  feeling  — 
it  maybe  unreasonable,  but  still  the  feeling 
is  there  —  that  the  profession  you  have 
adopted  is  not  quite  —  is  just  a  little " 

"  Now,  Enguerrand !  "  said  Jeanne,  an 
angry  flash  sparkling  in  her  eyes.  She 
was  a  little  touchy  on  this  subject,  the  word 
she  most  affected  to  despise  being  also 
the  one  she  most  dreaded, — the  adjective 
"  unladylike." 

"  Don't  misunderstand  me,  Jeanne,"  went 
on  Enguerrand,  imploringly :  "  you  may 
naturally  think  that,  because  I  should  have 
succeeded  to  the  post,  with  its  income 
and  perquisites,  had  you  relinquished  your 
claim,  there  is  therefore  some  personal 
feeling  in  my  remonstrances.  Believe  me, 
2  17 


The  Headswoman 

it  is  not  so.  My  own  interests  do  not 
weigh  with  me  for  a  moment.  It  is  on 
your  account,  Jeanne,  and  yours  alone,  that 
I  ask  you  to  consider  whether  the  higher 
aesthetic  qualities,  which  I  know  you 
possess,  may  not  become  cramped  and 
thwarted  by  '  the  trivial  round,  the  com- 
mon task,'  which  you  have  lightly  under- 
taken. However  laudable  a  professional 
life  may  be,  one  always  feels  that  with  a 
delicate  organism  such  as  woman,  some 
of  the  bloom  may  possibly  get  rubbed 
off  the  peach." 

11  Well,  Enguerrand,"  said  Jeanne,  com- 
posing herself  with  an  effort,  though  her 
lips  were  set  hard,  "  I  will  do  you  the 
justice  to  believe  that  personal  advantage 
does  not  influence  you,  and  I  will  try  to 
reason  calmly  with  you,  and  convince  you 
that  you  are  simply  hide-bound  by  old- 
world  prejudice.  Now,  take  yourself,  for 
instance,  who  come   here  to  instruct  me: 

18 


The  Headswoman 

what  does  your  profession  amount  to,  when 
all 's  said  and  done  ?  A  mass  of  lies,  quib- 
bles, dodges,  and  tricks,  that  would  make 
any  self-respecting  executioner  blush  !  And 
even  with  the  dirty  weapons  at  your  com- 
mand, you  make  but  a  poor  show  of  it. 
There  was  that  wretched  fellow  you  de- 
fended only  two  days  ago.  (I  was  in 
court  during  the  trial  —  professional  in- 
terest, you  know.)  Well,  he  had  his  reg- 
ular alibi  all  ready,  as  clear  as  clear  could 
be;  only  you  must  needs  go  and  mess 
and  bungle  the  thing  up,  so  that,  just  as  I 
expected  all  along,  he  was  passed  on  to  me 
for  treatment  in  due  course.  You  may 
like  to  have  his  opinion  —  that  of  a  shrewd, 
though  unlettered  person.  'It's  a  real 
pleasure,  miss,'  he  said,  '  to  be  handled  by 
you.  You  knows  your  work,  and  you  does 
your  work  —  though  p'raps  I  ses  it  as 
shouldn't.  If  that  blooming  fool  of  a 
mouthpiece  of  mine'  — he  was  referring  to 

i9 


The  Headswoman 

you,  dear,  in  your  capacity  of  advocate  — 
'  had  known  his  business  half  as  well  as 
you  do  yours,  I  should  n't  a  bin  here  now  I ' 
And  you  know,  Enguerrand,  he  was  per- 
fectly right." 

"  Well,  perhaps  he  was,"  admitted  En- 
guerrand. "  You  see,  I  had  been  working 
at  a  sonnet  the  night  before,  and  I  could  n't 
get  the  rhymes  right,  and  they  would  keep 
coming  into  my  head  in  court  and  mixing 
themselves  up  with  the  alibi.  But  look 
here,  Jeanne,  when  you  saw  I  was  going 
off  the  track,  you  might  have  given  me  a 
friendly  hint,  you  know  —  for  old  times' 
sake,  if  not  for  the  prisoner's !  " 

"  I  daresay,"  replied  Jeanne,  calmly : 
"  perhaps  you  '11  tell  me  why  I  should  sac- 
rifice my  interests  because  you  're  unable 
to  look  after  yours.  You  forget  that  I  re- 
ceive a  bonus,  over  and  above  my  salary, 
upon  each  exercise  of  my  functions  !  " 

"True,"  said  Enguerrand,  gloomily:  "  I 
20 


The  Headswoman 

did  forget  that.  I  wish  I  had  your  business 
aptitudes,  Jeanne." 

"  I  daresay  you  do,"  remarked  Jeanne. 
"  But  you  see,  dear,  how  all  your  argu- 
ments fall  to  the  ground.  You  mistake  a 
prepossession  for  a  logical  base.  Now 
if  I  had  gone,  like  that  Clairette  you  used 
to  dangle  after,  and  been  waiting-woman 
to  some  grand  lady  in  a  chateau,  —  a 
thin-blooded  compound  of  drudge  and 
sycophant,  —  then,  I  suppose,  you  'd  have 
been  perfectly  satisfied.  So  feminine  !  So 
genteel !  " 

"  She 's  not  a  bad  sort  of  girl,  little  Claire," 
said  Enguerrand,  reflectively  (thereby  an- 
gering Jeanne  afresh)  :  "  but  putting  her 
aside,  —  of  course  you  could  always  beat 
me  at  argument,  Jeanne  ;  you  'd  have  made 
a  much  better  lawyer  than  I.  But  you 
know,  dear,  how  much  I  care  about  you ; 
and  I  did  hope  that  on  that  account  even 
a  prejudice,  however  unreasonable,  might 

21 


The   Headswoman 

have  some  little  weight.  And  I  'm  not 
alone,  let  me  tell  you,  in  my  views.  There 
was  a  fellow  in  court  only  to-day,  who  was 
saying  that  yours  was  only  a  succts  d'estime, 
and  that  woman,  as  a  naturally  talkative 
and  hopelessly  unpunctual  animal,  could 
never  be  more  than  a  clever  amateur  in 
the  profession  you  have  chosen." 

"  That  will  do,  Enguerrand,"  said  Jeanne, 
proudly;  "it  seems  that  when  argument 
fails,  you  can  stoop  so  low  as  to  insult  me 
through  my  sex.  You  men  are  all  alike,  — 
steeped  in  brutish  masculine  prejudice. 
Now  go  away,  and  don't  mention  the  sub- 
ject to  me  again  till  you  're  quite  reason- 
able and  nice." 


22 


The  Headswoman 


III 


TEANNE  passed  a  somewhat  restless 
**  night  after  her  small  scene  with  her 
cousin,  waking  depressed  and  unrefreshed. 
Though  she  had  carried  matters  with  so 
high  a  hand,  and  had  scored  so  distinctly 
all  around,  she  had  been  more  agitated 
than  she  had  cared  to  show.  She  liked 
Enguerrand ;  and  more  especially  did  she 
like  his  admiration  for  her ;  and  that  chance 
allusion  to  Clairette  contained  possibilities 
that  were  alarming.  In  embracing  a  pro- 
fessional career,  she  had  never  thought  for 
a  moment  that  it  could  militate  against 
that  due  share  of  admiration  to  which,  as  a 
girl,  she  was  justly  entitled ;  and  Enguer- 
rand's  views  seemed  this  morning  all  the 

23 


The  Headswoman 

more  narrow  and  inexcusable.  She  rose 
languidly,  and  as  soon  as  she  was  dressed 
sent  off  a  little  note  to  the  Mayor,  saying 
that  she  had  a  nervous  headache  and  felt 
out  of  sorts,  and  begging  to  be  excused 
from  attendance  on  that  day;  and  the 
missive  reached  the  Mayor  just  as  he  was 
taking  his  usual  place  at  the  head  of  the 
Board. 

"  Dear,  dear  !  "  said  the  kind-hearted  old 
man,  as  soon  as  he  had  read  the  letter  to 
his  fellow-councilmen  :  "  I  'm  very  sorry. 
Poor  girl !  Here,  one  of  you  fellows,  just 
run  round  and  tell  the  gaoler  there  won't 
be  any  business  to-day.  Jeanne  's  seedy. 
It 's  put  off  till  to-morrow.  And  now,  gen- 
tlemen, the  agenda " 

"Really,  your  worship,"  exploded 
Robinet,  "  this  is  simply  ridiculous !  ' 

"  Upon  my  word,  Robinet,"  said  the 
Mayor,  "I  don't  know  what's  the  matter 
with  you.     Here's  a  poor  girl  unwell, — 

24 


The  Headswoman 

and  a  more  hardworking  girl  is  n't  in  the 
town,  —  and  instead  of  sympathising  with 
her,  and  saying  you  're  sorry,  you  call  it 
ridiculous !  Suppose  you  had  a  headache 
yourself!     You  would  n't  like " 

"  But  it  is  ridiculous,"  maintained  the 
tanner,  stoutly.  "  Who  ever  heard  of  an 
executioner  having  a  nervous  headache? 
There  's  no  precedent  for  it.  And  '  out  of 
sorts,'  too !  Suppose  the  criminals  said 
they  were  out  of  sorts,  and  did  n't  feel  up 
to  being  executed?" 

"Well,  suppose  they  did,"  replied  the 
Mayor,  "  we  'd  try  and  meet  them  halfway, 
I  daresay.  They  'd  have  to  be  executed 
some  time  or  other,  you  know.  Why  on 
earth  are  you  so  captious  about  trifles? 
The  prisoners  won't  mind,  and  /  don't 
mind:  nobody's  inconvenienced,  and 
everybody  's  happy  !  " 

"  You  're  right  there,  Mr.  Mayor,"  put 
in  another  councilman.     "This  executing 

25 


The  Headswoman 

business  used  to  give  the  town  a  lot  of 
trouble  and  bother;  now  it 's  all  as  easy  as 
kiss-your-hand.  Instead  of  objecting,  as 
they  used  to  do,  and  wanting  to  argue 
the  point  and  kick  up  a  row,  the  fellows  as 
is  told  off  for  execution  come  skipping 
along  in  the  morning,  like  a  lot  of  lambs  in 
Maytime.  And  then  the  fun  there  is  on 
the  scaffold  !  The  jokes,  the  back-answers, 
the  repartees  !  And  never  a  word  to  shock 
a  baby !  Why,  my  little  girl,  as  goes 
through  the  market-place  every  morning 
—  on  her  way  to  school,  you  know  —  she 
says  to  me  only  yesterday,  she  says,  '  Why, 
father,'  she  says,  '  it 's  as  good  as  the  play- 
actors,' she  says." 

"There  again,"  persisted  Robinct,  "I 
object  to  that  too.  They  ought  to  show  a 
properer  feeling.  Playing  at  mummers  is 
one  thing,  and  being  executed  is  another, 
and  people  ought  to  keep  'cm  separate.  In 
my  father's  time,  that  sort  of  thing  wasn't 

26 


The  Headswoman 

thought  good  taste,  and  I  don't  hold  with 
new-fangled  notions." 

"  Well,  really,  neighbour,"  said  the  Mayor, 
"  I  think  you  're  out  of  sorts  yourself  to- 
day. You  must  have  got  out  of  bed  the 
wrong  side  this  morning.  As  for  a  little 
joke,  more  or  less,  we  all  know  a  maiden 
loves  a  merry  jest  when  she's  certain  of 
having  the  last  word !  But  I  '11  tell  you 
what  I  '11  do,  if  it  '11  please  you ;  I  '11  go 
round  and  see  Jeanne  myself  on  my  way 
home,  and  tell  her  —  quite  nicely,  you 
know  —  that  once  in  a  way  does  n't  matter, 
but  that  if  she  feels  her  health  won't  let 
her  keep  regular  business  hours,  she 
mustn't  think  of  going  on  with  anything 
that 's  bad  for  her.  Like  that,  don't  you 
see  ?  And  now,  gentlemen,  let 's  read  the 
minutes !  " 

Thus  it  came  about  that  Jeanne  took  her 
usual  walk  that  evening  with  a  ruffled  brow 
and  a  swelling  heart;   and  her  little  hand 

27 


The   Headswoman 

opened  and  shut  angrily  as  she  paced  the 
ramparts.  She  could  n't  stand  being  found 
fault  with.  How  could  she  help  having  a 
headache?  Those  clods  of  citizens  didn't 
know  what  a  highly  strung  sensitive  organ- 
isation was.  Absorbed  in  her  reflections, 
she  had  taken  several  turns  up  and  down 
the  grassy  footway  before  she  became 
aware  that  she  was  not  alone.  A  youth, 
of  richer  dress  and  more  elegant  bear- 
ing than  the  general  run  of  the  Rade- 
gundians,  was  leaning  in  an  embrasure, 
watching  the  graceful  figure  with  evident 
interest. 

"  Something  has  vexed  you,  fair  maiden  ?  " 
he  observed,  coming  forward  deferentially 
as  soon  as  he  perceived  he  was  noticed ; 
"  and  care  sits  but  awkwardly  on  that 
smooth  young  brow." 

"  Nay,  it  is  nothing,  kind  sir,"  replied 
Jeanne;  "we  girls  who  work  for  our  liv- 
ing must  not   be    too  sensitive.     My  em- 

28 


The  Headswoman 

ployers  have  been  somewhat  exigent, 
that  is  all.  I  did  wrong  to  take  it  to 
heart." 

"  'T  is  the  way  of  the  bloated  capitalist," 
rejoined  the  young  man,  lightly,  as  he 
turned  to  walk  by  her  side.  "  They  grind 
us,  they  grind  us;  perhaps  some  day  they 
will  come  under  your  hands  in  turn,  and 
then  you  can  pay  them  out.  And  so  you 
toil  and  spin,  fair  lily !  And  yet  methinks 
those  delicate  hands  show  little  trace  of 
labour?" 

"  You  wrong  me,  indeed,  sir,"  replied 
Jeanne,  merrily.  "  These  hands  of  mine, 
that  you  are  so  good  as  to  admire,  do 
great  execution !  " 

"  I  can  well  believe  that  your  victims  are 
numerous,"  he  replied;  "may  I  be  per- 
mitted to  rank  myself  among  the  latest 
of  them?" 

"  I  wish  you  a  better  fortune,  kind  sir," 
answered  Jeanne,  demurely. 

29 


The   Headswoman 

"  I  can  imagine  no  more  delightful  om  ." 
he  replied ;  "  and  where  do  you  ply  your 
daily  task,  fair  mistress?  Not  entirely  out 
of  sight  and  access,  I  trust?" 

"  Nay,  sir,"  laughed  Jeanne,  "  I  work  in 
the  market-place  most  mornings,  and  there 
is  no  charge  for  admission ;  and  access  is 
far  from  difficult.     Indeed,  some  complain 

—  but  that  is  no  business  of  mine.  And 
now  I  must  be  wishing  you  a  good-evening. 
Nay,"  —  for  he  would  have  detained  her, 

—  "it  is  not  seemly  for  an  unprotected 
maiden  to  tarry  in  converse  with  a  stranger 
at  this  hour.  An  rcvoir,  sir !  If  you 
should  happen  to  be  in  the  market-place 

any     morning "      And     she     tripped 

lightly  away.  The  youth,  gazing  aft(  r 
her  retreating  figure,  confessed  him 
strangely  fascinated  by  this  fair  unknown, 
whose  particular  employment,  by  the  way, 
he  had  forgotten  to  ask;  while  Jeanne,  ;i> 
she  sped  homewards,  could    not  help  re- 

30 


The  Headswoman 

fleeting  that,  for  style  and  distinction, 
this  new  acquaintance  threw  into  the 
shade  all  the  Enguerrands  and  others 
she  had  met  hitherto  —  even  in  the  course 
of  business. 


3i 


The   Headswoman 


IV 


THE  next  morning  was  bright  and 
breezy,  and  Jeanne  was  early  at  her 
post,  feeling  quite  a  different  girl.  The 
busy  little  market-place  was  full  of  colour 
and  movement,  and  the  gay  patches  of 
flowers  and  fruit,  the  strings  of  fluttering 
kerchiefs,  and  the  piles  of  red  and  yellow 
pottery,  formed  an  artistic  setting  to  the 
quiet  impressive  scaffold  which  they  framed. 
Jeanne  was  in  short  sleeves,  according  to 
the  etiquette  of  her  office,  and  her  round 
graceful  arms  showed  snowily  against  her 
.lark  blue  skirt  and  scarlet  tight-fitting 
bodice.  Her  assistant  looked  at  her  with 
admiration. 

"  Hope   you  're   better,   miss,"  he   said 
respectfully.      "  It   was  just  as  well   you 

32 


The  Headswoman 

did  n't  put  yourself  out  to  come  yesterday ; 
there  was  nothing  particular  to  do.  Only 
one  fellow,  and  he  said  he  did  n't  care ;  any- 
thing to  oblige  a  lady  !  " 

"  Well,  I  wish  he  'd  hurry  up  now,  to 
oblige  a  lady,"  said  Jeanne,  swinging  her 
axe  carelessly  to  and  fro:  "ten  minutes 
past  the  hour;  I  shall  have  to  talk  to 
the  Mayor  about  this." 

"  It 's  a  pity  there  ain't  a  better  show 
this  morning,"  pursued  the  assistant,  as  he 
leant  over  the  rail  of  the  scaffold  and  spat 
meditatively  into  the  busy  throng  below. 
"  They  do  say  as  how  the  young  Seigneur 
arrived  at  the  Chateau  yesterday —  him  as 
has  been  finishing  his  education  in  Paris, 
you  know.  He  's  as  likely  as  not  to  be  in 
the  market-place  to-day;  and  if  he's  dis- 
appointed, he  may  go  off  to  Paris  again, 
which  would  be  a  pity,  seeing  the  Chateau 's 
been  empty  so  long.  But  he  may  go  to 
Paris,  or  anywheres  else  he 's  a  mind  to,  he 
3  33 


The   Headswoman 

won't  see  better  workmanship  than  in  this 
here  little  town  !  " 

"  Well,  my  good  Raoul,"  said  Jeanne, 
colouring  slightly  at  the  obvious  compli- 
ment, "  quality,  not  quantity,  is  what  we 
aim  at  here,  you  know.  If  a  Paris  educa- 
tion has  been  properly  assimilated  by  the 
Seigneur,  he  will  not  fail  to  make  all  the 
necessary  allowances.  But  see,  the  prison- 
doors  arc  opening  at  last !  " 

They  both  looked  across  the  little  square 
to  the  prison,  which  fronted  the  scaffold ; 
and  sure  enough,  a  small  body  of  men,  the 
Sheriff  at  their  head,  was  issuing  from  the 
building,  conveying,  or  endeavouring  to 
convey,  the  tardy  prisoner  to  the  scaffold. 
That  gentleman,  however,  seemed  to  be  in 
a  different  and  less  obliging  frame  of  mind 
from  that  of  the  previous  day  ;  and  at  every 
pace  one  or  other  of  the  guards  was  shot 
violently  into  the  middle  of  the  square, 
propelled  by  a  vigorous  kick  or  blow  from 

34 


The   Headswoman 

the  struggling  captive.  The  crowd,  unac- 
customed of  late  to  such  demonstrations  of 
feeling,  and  resenting  the  prisoner's  want 
of  taste,  hooted  loudly;  but  it  was  not 
until  that  ingenious  mediaeval  arrangement 
known  as  la  marche  aux  crapauds  had  been 
brought  to  bear  on  him  that  the  reluctant 
convict  could  be  prevailed  upon  to  present 
himself  before  the  young  lady  he  had 
already  so  unwarrantably  detained. 

Jeanne's  profession  had  both  accustomed 
her  to  surprises  and  taught  her  the  futility 
of  considering  her  clients  as  drawn  from 
any  one  particular  class;  yet  she  could 
hardly  help  feeling  some  astonishment  on 
recognising  her  new  acquaintance  of  the 
previous  evening.  That,  with  all  his  evi- 
dent amiability  of  character,  he  should 
come  to  this  end,  was  not  in  itself  a  special 
subject  for  wonder;  but  that  he  should 
have  been  conversing  with  her  on  the  ram- 
parts at  the  hour  when  —  after  courteously 

35 


The   Headswoman 

excusing  her  attendance  on  the  scaffold  — 
he  was  cooling  his  heels  in  prison  for  an- 
other day,  seemed  hardly  to  be  accounted 
for,  at  first  sight.  Jeanne,  however,  reflected 
that  the  reconciling  of  apparent  contra- 
dictions was  not  included  in  her  official 
duties. 

The  Sheriff,  wiping  his  heated  brow,  now 
read  the  formal  prods  delivering  over  the 
prisoner  to  the  executioner's  hands ;  "  and 
a  nice  job  we  've  had  to  get  him  here," 
he  added  on  his  own  account.  And  the 
young  man,  who  had  remained  perfectly 
tractable  since  his  arrival,  stepped  for- 
ward and  bowed  politely. 

"  Now  that  we  have  been  properly  in- 
troduced," said  he,  courteously,  "  allow  me 
to  apologise  for  any  inconvenience  you 
have  been  put  to  by  my  delay.  The  fault 
was  entirely  mine,  and  these  gentlemen 
are  in  no  way  to  blame.  Had  I  known 
whom  I  was  to  have  the  pleasure  of  mcct- 

36 


The  Headswoman 

ing,  wings  could  not  have  conveyed   me 
swiftly  enough." 

"  Do  not  mention,  I  pray,  the  word  in- 
convenience," replied  Jeanne,  with  that 
timid  erace  which  so  well  became  her. 
"  I  only  trust  that  any  slight  discomfort  it 
may  be  my  duty  to  cause  you  before  we 
part  will  be  as  easily  pardoned.  And 
now  —  for  the  morning,  alas  !  advances  — 
any  little  advice  or  assistance  that  I  can 
offer  is  quite  at  your  service ;  for  the  situ- 
ation is  possibly  new,  and  you  may  have 
had  but  little  experience." 

"  Faith,  none  worth  mentioning,"  said 
the  prisoner,  gaily.  "  Treat  me  as  a  raw 
beginner.  Though  our  acquaintance  has 
been  but  brief,  I  have  the  utmost  confi- 
dence in  you." 

"  Then,  sir,"  said  Jeanne,  blushing,  "  sup- 
pose I  were  to  assist  you  in  removing  this 
gay  doublet,  so  as  to  give  both  of  us  more 
freedom  and  less  responsibility?" 

37 


The  Headswoman 

"A  perquisite  of  the  office?"  queried 
the  prisoner  with  a  smile,  as  he  slipped 
one  arm  out  of  its  sleeve. 

A  flush  came  over  Jeanne's  fair  brow. 
"  That  was  ungenerous,"  she  said. 

"  Nay,  pardon  me,  sweet  one,"  said  he, 
laughing:  "'twas  but  a  poor  jest  of  mine 
—  in  bad  taste,  I  willingly  admit." 

"  I  was  sure  you  did  not  mean  to  hurt 
me,"  she  replied  kindly,  while  her  fin 
were  busy  in  turning  back  the  collar  of  his 
shirt.  It  was  composed,  she  noticed,  of 
the  finest  point  lace;  and  she  could  not 
help  a  feeling  of  regret  that  some  slight 
error  —  as  must,  from  what  she  knew, 
exist  somewhere  —  should  compel  her  to 
take  a  course  so  at  variance  with  her  real 
feelings.  Her  only  comfort  was  that  the 
youth  himself  seemed  entirely  satisfied 
with  his  situation.  He  hummed  the  last 
air  from  Paris  during  her  ministrations, 
and   when  she   had  quite    finished,   kissed 

38 


The  Headswoman 

the    pretty    fingers    "with    a   metropolitan 
grace. 

"  And  now,  sir,"  said  Jeanne,  "  if  you 
will  kindly  come  this  way :  and  please  to 
mind  the  step  —  so.  Now,  if  you  will  have 
the  goodness  to  kneel  here —  nay,  the  saw- 
dust is  perfectly  clean ;  you  are  my  first 
client  this  morning.  On  the  other  side  of 
the  block  you  will  find  a  nick,  more  or 
less  adapted  to  the  human  chin,  though 
a  perfect  fit  cannot  of  course  be  guaran- 
teed in  every  case.  So  !  Are  you  pretty 
comfortable  ?  " 

"A  bed  of  roses,"  replied  the  prisoner. 
"And  what  a  really  admirable  view  one 
gets  of  the  valley  and  the  river,  from  just 
this  particular  point !  " 

"  Charming,  is  it  not?  "  replied  Jeanne. 
"  I  'm  so  glad  you  do  justice  to  it  Some 
of  your  predecessors  have  really  quite 
vexed  me  by  their  inability  to  appre- 
ciate that  view.     It 's  worth  coming  here 

39 


The  Headswoman 

to  sec  it.  And  now,  to  return  to  busi- 
ness for  one  moment,  —  would  you  prefer 
to  give  the  word  yourself?  Some  people 
do ;  it's  a  mere  matter  of  taste.  Or 
will  you  leave  yourself  entirely  in  my 
hands  ? " 

"  Oh,  in  your  fair  hands,"  replied  her 
client,  "  which  I  beg  you  to  consider  re- 
spectfully kissed  once  more  by  your  faith- 
ful servant  to  command." 

Jeanne,  blushing  rosily,  stepped  back  a 
pace,  moistening  her  palms  as  she  grasped 
her  axe,  when  a  puffing  and  blowing  be- 
hind caused  her  to  turn  her  head,  and  she 
perceived  the  Mayor  hastily  ascending  the 
scaffold. 

"  Hold  on  a  minute,  Jeanne,  my  girl,"  he 
gasped.  "  Don't  be  in  a  hurry.  There  's 
been  some  little  mistake." 

Jeanne  drew  herself  up  with  dignity. 
"  I  'm  afraid  I  don't  quite  understand  you, 
Mr.  Mayor,"  she    replied    in  freezing    ac- 

40 


The  Headswoman 

cents.     "  There 's  been  no  little  mistake  on 
my  part  that  I  'm  aware  of." 

"  No,  no,  no,"  said  the  Mayor,  apologet- 
ically ;  "  but  on  somebody  else's  there  has. 
You  see  it  happened  in  this  way :  this  here 
young  fellow  was  going  round  the  town 
last  night ;  and  he  'd  been  dining,  I  should 
say,  and  he  was  carrying  on  rather  free.  I 
will  only  say  so  much  in  your  presence, 
that  he  was  carrying  on  decidedly  free. 
So  the  town-guard  happened  to  come 
across  him,  and  he  was  very  high  and  very 
haughty,  he  was,  and  would  n't  give  his 
name  nor  yet  his  address  —  as  a  gentleman 
should,  you  know,  when  he  's  been  dining 
and  carrying  on  free.  So  our  fellows  just 
ran  him  in — and  it  took  the  pick  of  them 
all  their  time  to  do  it,  too.  Well,  then,  the 
other  chap  who  was  in  prison  —  the  gen- 
tleman who  obliged  you  yesterday,  you 
know  — what  does  he  do  but  slip  out  and 
run  away  in  the  middle  of  all  the  row  and 

4i 


The  Headswoman 

confusion ;  and  very  inconsiderate  and  un- 
gcntlemanly  it  was  of  him  to  take  advan- 
tage of  us  in  that  mean  way,  just  when  we 
wanted  a  little  sympathy  and  forbearance. 
Well,  the  Sheriff  comes  this  morning  to 
fetch  out  his  man  for  execution,  and  he 
knows  there  's  only  one  man  to  execute, 
and  he  sees  there  's  only  one  man  in  prison, 
and  it  all  seems  as  simple  as  A  B  C — he 
never  was  much  of  a  mathematician,  you 
know  —  so  he  fetches  our  friend  here  along, 
quite  gaily.  And  —  and  that 's  how  it  came 
about,  you  sec ;  hinc  illce  lachrymce,  as  the 
Roman  poet  has  it.  So  now  I  shall  just 
give  this  young  fellow  a  good  talking  to, 
and  discharge  him  with  a  caution ;  and  we 
sha'n't  require  you  any  more  to-day,  Jeanne, 
my  girl." 

"  Now,  look  here,  Mr.  Mayor,"  said 
Jeanne,  severely,  "  you  utterly  fail  to  grasp 
the  situation  in  its  true  light.  All  these 
little  details  may  be  interesting  in  them- 

42 


The  Headswoman 

selves,  and  doubtless  the  press  will  take 
note  of  them;  but  they  are  entirely  beside 
the  point.  With  the  muddleheadedness  of 
your  officials  (which  I  have  frequently  re- 
marked upon)  I  have  nothing  whatever  to 
do.  All  I  know  is,  that  this  young  gentle- 
man has  been  formally  handed  over  to  me 
for  execution,  with  all  the  necessary  legal 
requirements ;  and  executed  he  has  got  to 
be.  When  my  duty  has  been  performed, 
you  are  at  liberty  to  reopen  the  case  if 
you  like ;  and  any  '  little  mistake '  that  may 
have  occurred  through  your  stupidity  you 
can  then  rectify  at  your  leisure.  Meantime, 
you  Ve  no  locus  standi  here  at  all ;  in  fact, 
you  've  no  business  whatever  lumbering  up 
my  scaffold.     So  shut  up  and  clear  out." 

"  Now,  Jeanne,  do  be  reasonable,"  im- 
plored the  Mayor.  "  You  women  are  so 
precise.  You  never  will  make  any  allow- 
ance for  the  necessary  margin  of  error  in 
things." 

43 


The   Headswoman 

"  If  I  were  to  allow  the  necessary  margin 
for  aWjour  errors,  Mayor,"  replied  Jeanne, 
coolly,  "  the  edition  would  have  to  be  a 
large-paper  one,  and  even  then  the  text 
would  stand  a  poor  chance.  And  now,  if 
you  don't  allow  me  the  necessary  margin 
to  swing  my  axe,  there  may  be  another 
'  little  mistake  ' " 

But  at  this  point  a  hubbub  arose  at  the 
foot  of  the  scaffold,  and  Jeanne,  leaning 
over,  perceived  sundry  tall  fellows,  clad  in 
the  livery  of  the  Seigneur,  engaged  in 
dispersing  the  municipal  guard  by  the 
agency  of  well-directed  kicks,  applied  with 
heartiness  and  anatomical  knowledge.  A 
moment  later,  there  strode  on  to  the 
scaffold,  clad  in  black  velvet,  and  adorned 
with  his  gold  chain  of  office,  the  stately  old 
seneschal  of  the  Chateau,  evidently  in  a 
towering  passion. 

"  Now,  mark  my  words,  you  miserable 
little   bladder-o'-lard,"    he    roared    at    the 

44 


The  Headswoman 

Mayor  (whose  bald  head  certainly  shone 
provokingly  in  the  morning  sun),  "  see  if  I 
don't  take  this  out  of  your  skin  presently !  " 
And  he  passed  on  to  where  the  youth  was 
still  kneeling,  apparently  quite  absorbed  in 
the  view. 

"My  lord,"  he  said  firmly  though  re- 
spectfully, "  your  hair-brained  folly  really 
passes  all  bounds.  Have  you  entirely  lost 
your  head?  " 

"Faith,  nearly,"  said  the  young  man, 
rising  and  stretching  himself.  "  Is  that 
you,  old  Thibault?  Ow,  what  a  crick  I  've 
got  in  my  neck!  But  that  view  of  the 
valley  was  really  delightful !  " 

"  Did  you  come  here  simply  to  admire 
the  view,  my  lord?"  inquired  Thibault, 
severely. 

"  I  came  because  my  horse  would  come," 
replied  the  young  Seigneur,  lightly :  "  that 
is,  these  gentlemen  here  were  so  pressing ; 
they  would  not  hear  of  any  refusal;  and 

45 


The   Headswoman 

besides,  they  forgot  to  mention  what  my 
attendance  was  required  in  such  a  hurry 
for.  And  when  I  got  here,  Thibault,  old 
fellow,  and  saw  that  divine  creature  —  nay, 
a  goddess,  tha  arte  —  so  graceful,  so  mod- 
est, so  anxious  to  acquit  herself  with  cred- 
it       Well,  you  know  my  weakness ;  I 

never  could  bear  to  disappoint  a  woman. 
She  had  evidently  set  her  heart  on  taking 
my  head ;  and  as  she  had  my  heart 
already " 

"  I  think,  my  lord,"  said  Thibault,  with 
some  severity,  "  you  had  better  let  me 
escort  you  back  to  the  Chateau.  This 
appears  to  be  hardly  a  safe  place  for  light- 
headed and  susceptible  persons !  " 

Jeanne,  as  was  natural,  had  the  last  word. 
"  Understand  me,  Mr.  Mayor,"  said  she, 
"  these  proceedings  are  entirely  irregular. 
I  decline  to  recognise  them,  and  when  the 
quarter  expires  I  shall  claim  the  usual 
bonus ! " 

46 


The  Headswoman 


V 


WHEN,  an  hour  or  two  later,  an 
invitation  arrived  —  courteously 
worded  but  significantly  backed  by  an 
escort  of  half-a-dozen  tall  archers  —  for 
both  Jeanne  and  the  Mayor  to  attend  at 
the  Chateau  without  delay,  Jeanne  for  her 
part  received  it  with  neither  surprise  nor 
reluctance.  She  had  felt  it  especially  hard 
that  the  only  two  interviews  fate  had 
granted  her  with  the  one  man  who  had 
made  some  impression  on  her  heart  should 
be  hampered,  the  one  by  considerations  of 
propriety,  the  other  by  the  conflicting 
claims  of  her  profession  and  its  duties.  On 
this  occasion,  now,  she  would  have  an  ex- 
cellent chaperon  in  the  Mayor ;  and,  busi- 
ness being  over  for  the  day,  they  could 

47 


The   Headswoman 

meet  and  unbend  on  a  common  social  foot- 
ing. The  Mayor  was  not  at  all  surprised 
cither,  considering  what  had  gone  before ; 
but  he  was  exceedingly  terrified,  and 
sought  some  consolation  from  Jeanne  as 
they  proceeded  together  to  the  Chateau. 
That  young  lady's  remarks,  however,  could 
hardly  be  called  exactly  comforting. 

"  I  always  thought  you  'd  put  your  foot 
in  it  some  day,  Mayor,"  she  said.  "  You 
are  so  hopelessly  wanting  in  system  and 
method.  Really,  under  the  present  happy- 
go-lucky  police  arrangements,  I  never 
know  whom  I  may  not  be  called  upon  to 
execute.  Between  you  and  my  cousin 
Enguerrand,  life  is  hardly  safe  in  this 
town.  And  the  worst  of  it  is,  that  we 
other  officials  on  the  staff  have  to  share 
in  the  discredit." 

"What  do  you  think  they'll  do  to  me, 
Jeanne?"  whimpered  the  Mayor,  perspir- 
ing freely. 

48 


The  Headswoman 

"  Can't  say,  I  'm  sure,"  pursued  the  can- 
did Jeanne.  "  Of  course,  if  it 's  anything 
in  the  rack  line  of  business,  I  shall  have 
to  superintend  the  arrangements,  and  then 
you  can  feel  sure  you  're  in  capable  hands. 
But  probably  they  '11  only  fine  you  pretty 
smartly,  give  you  a  month  or  two  in  the 
dungeons,  and  dismiss  you  from  your 
post;  and  you  will  hardly  grudge  any 
slight  personal  inconvenience  resulting 
from  an  arrangement  so  much  to  the  ad- 
vantage of  the  town." 

This  was  hardly  reassuring,  but  the 
Mayor's  official  reprimand  of  the  previous 
day  still  rankled  in  this  unforgiving  young 
person's  mind. 

On  their  reaching  the  Chateau  the 
Mayor  was  conducted  aside,  to  be  dealt 
with  by  Thibault;  and  from  the  sounds  of 
agonised  protestation  and  lament  which 
shortly  reached  Jeanne's  ears,  it  was  evi- 
dent that  he  was  having  a  manvais  quart 
4  49 


The  Headswoman 

cTkeure,  The  young  lady  was  shown  rc- 
spectfully  into  a  chamber  apart,  where  she 
had  hardly  had  time  to  admire  sufficiently 
the  good  taste  of  the  furniture  and  the 
magnificence  of  the  tapestry  with  which 
the  walls  were  hung,  when  the  Seigneur 
entered  and  welcomed  her  with  a  cor- 
dial grace  that  put  her  entirely  at  her 
ease. 

"  Your  punctuality  puts  me  to  shame, 
fair  mistress,"  he  said,  "  considering  how 
unwarrantably  I  kept  you  waiting  this 
morning,  and  how  I  tested  your  patience 
by  my  ignorance  and  awkwardness." 

He  had  changed  his  dress,  and  the  lace 
round  his  neck  was  even  richer  than  before. 
Jeanne  had  always  considered  one  of  the 
chief  marks  of  a  well-bred  man  to  be  a  fine 
disregard  for  the  amount  of  his  washing- 
bill ;  and  then  with  what  good  taste  he  re- 
ferred to  recent  events  —  putting  himself 
in  the  wrong,  as  a  gentleman  should! 

5° 


The  Headswoman 

"  Indeed,  my  lord,"  she  replied  modestly, 
"  I  was  only  too  anxious  to  hear  from  your 
own  lips  that  you  bore  me  no  ill-will  for 
the  part  forced  on  me  by  circumstances  in 
our  recent  interview.  Your  lordship  has 
sufficient  critical  good  sense,  I  feel  sure,  to 
distinguish  between  the  woman  and  the 
official." 

"True,  Jeanne,"  he  replied,  drawing 
nearer ;  "  and  while  I  shrink  from  express- 
ing, in  their  fulness,  all  the  feelings  that 
the  woman  inspires  in  me,  I  have  no  hesi- 
tation —  for  I  know  it  will  give  you  pleasure 
—  in  acquainting  you  with  the  entire  artis- 
tic satisfaction  with  which  I  watched  you 
at  your  task  !  " 

"But,  indeed,"  said  Jeanne,  "you  did 
not  see  me  at  my  best.  In  fact,  I  can't 
help  wishing  —  it 's  ridiculous,  I  know,  be- 
cause the  thing  is  hardly  practicable  —  but 
if  I  could  only  have  carried  my  perform- 
ance quite  through,  and  put  the  last  fin- 

51 


The  Headswoman 

ishing  touches  to  it,  you  would  not  have 
been  judging  me  now  by  the  mere  '  block- 
ing-in '  of  what  promised  to  be  a  master- 
piece !  " 

"  Yes,  I  wish  it  could  have  been  ar- 
ranged somehow,"  said  the  Seigneur,  re- 
flectively; "but  perhaps  it's  better  as  it 
is.  I  am  content  to  let  the  artist  re- 
main for  the  present  on  trust,  if  I  may 
only  take  over,  fully  paid  up,  the  woman 
I  adore  ! " 

Jeanne  felt  strangely  weak.  The  official 
seemed  oozing  out  at  her  fingers  and  toes, 
while  the  woman's  heart  beat  even  more 
distressingly. 

"  I  have  one  little  question  to  ask,"  he 
murmured  (his  arm  was  about  her  now). 
"  Do  I  understand  that  you  still  claim  your 
bonus?" 

Jeanne  felt  like  water  in  his  strong  em- 
brace ;  but  she  nerved  herself  to  answer 
faintly  but  firmly,  "  Yes  !  " 

52 


The  Headswoman 

"  Then  so  do  I,"  he  replied,  as  his  lips 
met  hers. 

Executions  continued  to  occur  in  St. 
Radegonde  ;  the  Radegundians  being  con- 
servative and  very  human.  But  much  of 
the  innocent  enjoyment  that  formerly  at- 
tended them  departed  after  the  fair  Chate- 
laine had  ceased  to  officiate.  Enguerrand, 
on  succeeding  to  the  post,  wedded  Clairette, 
she  being  (he  was  heard  to  say)  a  more 
suitable  match  in  mind  and  temper  than 
others  of  whom  he  would  name  no  names. 
Rumour  had  it,  that  he  found  his  match 
and  something  over ;  while  as  for  temper  — 
and  mind  (which  she  gave  him  in  bits)  — 
But  the  domestic  trials  of  high-placed  offi- 
cials have  a  right  to  be  held  sacred.  The 
profession,  in  spite  of  his  best  endeavours, 
languished  nevertheless.  Some  said  that 
the  scaffold  lacked  its  old  attraction  for 
criminals  of  spirit;  others,  more  unkindly, 

53 


The   Headswoman 

that  the  headsman  was  the  innocent  cause, 
and  that  Enguerrand  was  less  fatal  In  his 
new  sphere  than  formerly,  when  practising 
in   the  criminal  court  as  advocate  for  the 

defence. 


54 


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•v7    ftnmrtl)    Cvnlinmc.     |)vintro    for   Jlobn 
Hanr,  bo  tljr  SInibrrsitp  JPrrss,  (JTambritiflt, 
2S. £>.&.,  in  l3pril,  m'Ucccirbiii 


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